


Protest The Way We're Built

by Eliza_Bella_xx



Category: My Chemical Romance
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, Blood, M/M, Vampire Sex, Vampire Turning, Vampires, vampire!AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-15
Updated: 2016-08-15
Packaged: 2018-08-09 01:06:33
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7781005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eliza_Bella_xx/pseuds/Eliza_Bella_xx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Vampires.<br/>For years they'd been the main attraction of horror films, gore fests and Halloween, of gothic romance and thriller fiction. Creepy blood suckers who burnt in sunlight and could turn into bats, slept upside down from the rafters and spoke with a Transylvanian accent. They were not real. Make-believe. Pretend. Fiction.</p>
<p>(Frerard oneshot, vampire au, NC-17)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Protest The Way We're Built

Vampires.

For years they'd been the main attraction of horror films, gore fests and Halloween, of gothic romance and thriller fiction. Creepy blood suckers who burnt in sunlight and could turn into bats, slept upside down from the rafters and spoke with a Transylvanian accent. They were not real. Make-believe. Pretend. Fiction.

That's what the children were told. Even teenagers thought so. But then it got to the point where, for whatever reason, people were spreading rumours about attacks, about seeing shadows coming after them down dark alleys, drop dead gorgeous strangers trying to seduce them with dazzling smiles and hypnotic red eyes. It was like the opposite of believing in the tooth fairy. You live your entire childhood thinking vampires aren't real, then something will happen and you'll realised the truth.

If you paid enough attention to the news (not main stream media, though) you'd have seen the marches, the demonstrations, the protests of crowds and crowds of people demanding recognition as vampires; calling vampire Halloween costumes 'racist'; insisting they weren't a danger to the general population. You'd have heard about the government doing their best on the 'down-low' to deal with the vampires of America, the blood banks, the registrations, the introduction of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' policies on Vampirism. You'd have your eyes opened and life would never been the same again.

For Frank Iero, he'd always kind of known there was something in the 'myths'. His parents had sat him down the weekend before starting high school and explained to him what vampires were. He was told they could be anywhere, but not to be afraid because they wouldn't hurt him. They were just like him and his parents; they just had slightly different lifestyles to regular people, but that it wasn't any of Frank concern. Frank wasn't to ask people, and vampires weren't to tell people. It was the new age 'taboo', just as, or even more, frowned upon than homosexuality ever had been.

The moment Frank really had his 'eyes opened' to Vampirism, however, came when his best friend, Mikey Way, was claimed. Mikey was just like a brother to Frank, and had been since he could remember. Frank was practically an honorary Way brother, spending more summers with Mikey and his older brother Gerard than he did with his own family. Growing up with the Way brothers was probably the best and more normal childhood anyone could have had, so when Mikey was claimed, Frank's world was thrown a little off balance.

There were lots of terms thrown around when someone was bitten by another person with Vampirism... claimed, turned, changed, the more comical 'vampified', or to say they had been 'sired' by a vampire. This transformation could only come from someone who had been more with vampirism, but no one knew how that happened. Born-vampires could crop up anywhere, and people often suspected it came from contaminated food consumed during pregnancy, but more often than not they came from hidden family lines of vampires going back centuries.

It just so happened that Mikey had peaked the interest of a born-vampire in their friendship group at school. Of course no one had known that Peter Wentz was a vampire until it was too late. Frank held felt that it was partly his own fault for blowing off the other two at the end of Junior prom, leaving Mikey and Pete to play video games at the latter's house alone. Now Mikey was bound to Pete in a way that was completely incomprehensible to a regular human, but Mikey didn't seem to mind.

Anyone who saw the way the two of them acted together would just assume that they were a couple, when really (thought here was a romantic element to their relationship) it was that Mikey literally needed Pete to survive now. He needed his Vampire Sire like a human needs water; he needed Pete's blood, the life blood to which he was now eternally bound, to keep his body going, to stop his organs from failing, and to keep him thinking straight. Without Pete, he would lose his mind and die. Literally.

Frank was still their friend though. After people had twigged that Mikey was a vampire, and Pete his Sire, most of the school had given them a wide birth. Mikey's family had taken it incredibly well, considering that Mikey was only sixteen, and now had allowed Pete to move in with them. Frank had learnt to deal with it, more being in shock about it all than being disapproving. It was safe to say though, Frank Iero was the only boy in school to be friends with the notorious gay vampires. Rumours had been started that he was a gay vampire too, but only the former of that was true, though not many people even knew. As far as people were concerned, it was all rumour.

Two years later, and not much had changed. Frank was eighteen now and Mikey and Pete were nineteen and twenty one, and stronger than ever. Pete was exactly the same as he had always been; a little below average height, average build, with dark hair, dark eyes, tanned skin and full lips. Mikey had turned into, really, something of beauty; he was tall and willowy, but moved with something close to simple grace; his sandy blond hair swept and curled about his porcelain face and ears effortlessly; his once plain hazel eyes were now luminescent with gold and emerald streaks, flashes of ruby infusing his irises on the few occasions Frank had seen him angry; his skin was flawless, other than when Pete would choose to bite (which Frank was thankful he had never seen); he was all round, stunning. Frank, compared to the other two, was nothing. He was shorter than Pete, standing at about five foot five, with a relatively pale complexion; his dark chocolate hair was cut short down both sides of his head, leaving a thick strip of long hair down the middle, his fringe sweeping to the right and curling around his eye; he had a ring through his right nostril and the left side of his bottom lip, which he had gotten when he was fifteen in an attempt to look like less of a target for bullies; he had hazel eyes, less of a mix of colours, and more of a plain honey colour, and arching eyebrows that were almost perfectly shaped. Overall, though, Frank saw himself as nothing out of the ordinary when it came to the kids of Belleville high, and he could blend into the corridor crowds so easily.

It was the week of senior prom, the last high school event Frank would have to attend in his life, and he was waiting out by the loose fence panel in the outside section of the venue for Mikey and Pete to show up. There were barely any staff around, and he was hoping to sneak them into the prom so he'd at least have someone to talk to. Checking the time on his phone again, Frank saw that it was now nine twenty-seven. Mikey and Pete were almost half an hour late, and Frank was no best pleased. It was surprisingly cold for July, and his white cotton shirt and black tapered jeans were not keeping him warm enough.

Sighing, he unlocked his phone and tapped Mikey's mobile contact. Holding the device to his ear, it just rang and rang and rang. He almost kicked the fence when it went to voicemail, but kept his composure for fear of being found hiding behind the bush that he was.

"Hey, Mikey," he sighed into the receiver, "Wherever you are, you're like, half an hour late. It's fucking cold and I'm almost outa smokes, so I'm going back inside in ten. Call me back asap, 'kay?"

He hung up and scuffed his foot in the dirt, sighing heavily and looking up. It was clear night, the clearest in a long time. The stars were out, shining bright. Mikey's older brother Gerard had told him when they were younger that if you focussed on a star for long enough you could actually see it twinkling because of how the atmosphere filters light. Picking out a particularly bright star, Frank watched the bright speck intently, and smirked as he saw the white light start flickering blue and yellow; it could almost have been a trick of the eyes if Frank hadn't actually looked up the science of it. Looking back down again, he replaced his phone in his pocket and took out his lighter and what seemed to be his last cigarette. He grumped to himself as he saw that it wasn't even from a pack, and it wasn't even rolled well. Frank couldn't roll a cigarette to save his life, so he usually left that to Pete or Gerard, but he always needed to have backups.

Sparking up his lighter and lighting his last smoke, he inhaled deeply then exhaled at the sky, smoke drifting across his vision like low hanging clouds in the night. Suddenly there was a rustling, then a disapproving 'hmph' noise; Frank looked forwards again, only to see that a teacher had pulled back the foliage that was hiding him and was not looking best pleased.

"Young man," she croaked, voice sounding more elderly than she looked, "Put out that cigarette at once!"

"Oh, but Miss, it's my last one-"

"I don't care if it was the last one in New Jersey, you put that out now, or you can go home."

Frank gave the woman his best death-scowl and threw the cigarette to the ground, "Fine," he stubbed it out with his foot, quite violently so, deliberately kicking dirt at the woman's feet, "How about I do both?" He pushed past her, causing her to emit a very indignant noise, and he stormed back into the prom hall, skirted around the edge of the dance floor, made his way past the tables, past the toilets, through the entrance hall, and back outside. No one tried to stop him, no one came outside to get him. No one was even outside to ask him why he'd just barrelled out of the double doors in the way he had.

Now what, he thought to himself.

Checking his phone again, there was no reply from Mikey. It would have been easier to walk to Mikey's house from here rather than his own, so he started walking. If Mikey was on his way from either his own house or Pete's they'd meet each other along the route anyway, even if Pete was driving them.

The streets were empty and quiet and cold, and Frank wished he'd brought a jacket. He's arrived by car, and had intended to leave by car, had Pete showed up, so he hadn't really seen a need, despite his mother's constant insisting he should really make an effort. Who for, though? There wasn't a dress code that require him to wear a suit jacket, his friends didn't care how he looked, he didn't have a date, and Frank himself certainly didn't give a toss about how smart he looked. A plain white shirt – long sleeved and untucked – with his best black jeans was smart enough for him. No tie, no jacket, no buttonhole flower.

He shivered. Mikey's house was only another three streets away.

Frank had a thought.

Pulling out his phone again, he scrolled though his contacts until he reached 'Way's (home)' and hit 'call'. Putting his phone to his ear again, he prayed that someone would pick up before his fingers dropped off from the cold.

One ring. Two rings. Three. Four. Fi-

"Hello, Way residence."

Frank smiled at the familiar voice, "Hey, Gee. It's Frank."

"Oh, hey Frank," Gerard sounded half asleep, voice a little gravelly sounding on the landline receiver, "Wha's up?"

"Just wondering where Mikey and Pete are? I was supposed to be meeting them tonight."

"Oh..." Gerard paused, "They've, uh... gone out."

"Where?" Frank frowned. They had made plans, hadn't they, and neither Mikey nor Pete could have been bothered to tell him they couldn't make it?

"Uh... hunting..." Gerard said the word like a twelve year old might say a cuss word with a teacher nearby.

"Oh. Right... Fucking asses! We had plans..." Frank knew what 'hunting' meant. It meant that Pete needed blood other than Mikey's, so the two of them had disappeared into the woods to sink their fangs into some poor, unsuspecting woodland creatures. The thought gave Frank chills. It was better than killing other people though, at least.

"Yeah... Hey," Gerard spoke up again, "It's prom night, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Frank kicked the sidewalk before crossing the street, not really caring about cars, "I was supposed to be letting them in through that loose fence panel, you know, so I'd have some people to hang out with."

"Oh, that sucks. I'm sorry..."

"Hmm." Frank stopped on the street corner, looking around for a moment and sighing, "Uh, Gee?"

"Yep?" Gerard popped the 'p', making Frank smirk a little.

"I was actually already on my way to yours... I don't suppose I could still come over, could I?"

"Oh, uh... well, yeah. Sure," Frank could almost see Gerard shrugging that shrug he did every time he was pretending not to care but was secretly happy, like when he and Mikey asked to watch one of Gerard's favourite films in his room, "I mean, no one else is home, and Mikey might not be back 'til morning, but we can hang out a bit."

"Okay cool", Frank smiled, walking again in the direction of the Ways' house, "I'll be there in a few, okay?"

"Cool, see you in a bit."

It was literally only a minute or two of walking before Frank was holding down the doorbell on the front door of the Ways' house. He laughed a little at the sound of Gerard's footsteps and the shouts of, "Alright, alright! Jeez, I'm coming, alright!"

The front door was opened, and there stood Gerard in all his greasy basement goth goodness, black hair hanging in front of his shadowed hazel eyes, Night Of The Living Dead t-shirt hanging on his frame a little too loosely and showing off his pale collarbones, pyjama pants looking like they could do with a good wash, and pale toes wriggling in the cold air blowing around them.

"Get inside, it's fucking freezing." Gerard grumbled, turning away almost as soon as the door was open.

"Oh, hello Gerard," Frank put on a mockingly friendly voice as he stepped over the threshold, swinging the door shut and following Gerard down the hall, "How nice to see you too! I'm good thanks, how are you?"

"Ha ha," Gerard said sarcastically, turning right and heading into the kitchen, "Comic genius, as always, Frankie."

"Always nice to hear from a fan," Frank hopped up to sit on the kitchen counter, watching Gerard shuffle over to the fridge, opening the door and peering in.

"You want a drink?"

"Got any beer?"

"Not for you, no," Gerard straightened up and slid a can of Coke across the counter top towards Frank, placing another one next to himself, "I'm not that irresponsible."

Frank huffed, opening his drink and sipping it, half glaring at, half watching Gerard. The older Way brother had been in Pete's year at Bellville, making him twenty one now. He'd never been in their 'group' at school, but Frank had gotten to know him from the sleepovers he'd had with the Ways, the weekends and summers spent at the park, in Gerard's basement bedroom, and aimlessly wandering the streets for lack of anything better to do. At school, while Frank, Mikey and Pete had their 'designated' table in the canteen and a hidden smoking spot, Gerard spent most of his spare time in one of the art classrooms working on his coursework and stuff he'd bring in form home. He'd always been quiet, and people had kept their distance due to the macabre nature of his art and his less than friendly appearance, but Frank knew Gerard well enough to see that Gerard was just a little vulnerable and put on what would be seen as an unapproachable front.

Frank liked Gerard, sometimes as a brother, sometimes as something more, but it always passed without incident. It was a passing fancy, and when it came to your best friend's older brother it was best to do nothing and let said fancy pass.

"Oh, come on, Gee. Just one beer, pretty please?"

"I said no, Frank." Gerard replied, sounding more like a parent than anything else, "If it's any consolation, I'm not drinking either, alright?"

Frank peered past Gerard and into the fridge. There was definitely beer, he could see it. There were also some stacked packets that looked a little out of place.

"Hey, Gee? What're those?"

"What?"

"Those bags? The red... Oh." Frank realised what there were before Gerard had a chance to explain. Never the less, Gerard reach in and lifted up one of the bags, the dark red liquid inside oozing about in the sealed plastic uninvitingly.

"It's uh... government supplied blood. For Mikey. You know," Gerard shuffled uncomfortably, "Just in case, or whatever."

"Right..." Frank looked away and cleared his throat uncomfortably as Gerard replaced the gruesome article, "Uh... Can I at least have a smoke? I'm all out."

Gerard looked at Frank and thought for a moment, hazel eyes seeming dull behind the shadows of his dark fringe, his thin lips curling up on the right, pixie nose twitching a little and he smirked.

"Ugh, fine," he smiled at Frank as he closed the fridge door and walked through to the living room, picking up his pack of Marlboro reds and throwing two of them like darts at Frank, who now stood in the doorway between the kitchen and living room and caught the cigarettes in his right hand.

"Thanks buddy," Frank stuck on in his pocket and the other in his mouth, fishing for his lighter again.

"You're just lucky I love y-- Don't!" Gerard rushed over and snatched the cigarette from Frank's lips, resulting in an indignant "Hey!" from Frank, "Not in here! Come on, let's go to my room." Gerard grabbed Frank's wrist and started towing him to the basement door, "My parents don't give a shit how it smells down there, but they'd kill me if they came back and the living room smelt like an ashtray."

Frank allowed himself to be dragged down the stairs, still complaining, "Dude, it's one cigarette, they wouldn't even notice if you sprayed a bit of air freshener around."

"Trust me," Gerard looked at him with big eyes and a sever look, "They would know. They always know."

They reached the bottom of the stairs leaving down to Gerard's bedroom, and Frank took the opportunity to look around for a second. Everything was exactly the same as the last time he'd been around, only the clothes scattered around the floor were perhaps different, and the bed sheets were indigo rather than black. Frank watched as Gerard chucked the cigarette pack onto the bedside table and clambered onto his bed again, sitting right in the middle with his back against the wall, facing the glow of the television screen.

"Come on," Gerard patted the bedspread beside him, balancing his can of Coke on his knee, legs crossed, "Don't just stand there, doofus."

Frank lips twitched into a smile, "Don't call me a doofus, doofus." He walked over and kicked off his shows, before sitting next to Gerard, between the older boy and the pillows, "What're you watching?"

"'Bram Stoker's Dracula'. It's like, the only decent vampire film since the Vampirism equality riots forced vampire films to be more accurate." Gerard grumbled, unfolding his legs so that his ankles hung over the edge of his bed.

"Oh, I like this one," Frank perked up, "Gary Oldman's an awesome actor... You know," he turned to Gerard, "You've got to kind of understand with a brother like Mikey, it's just having an accurate media representation. Even this one is kinda discriminating, what with Dracula being the bad guy."

"Yeah, but vampire's have been around for centuries, the legends have got to be founded on something," Gerard raised an eyebrow, "Like, Dracula is based off a real guy who stuck people on spikes and had a picnic in a forest of corpses. What if that story just got mixed in with real life vampire antics?"

"Huh..." Frank nodded, "I guess so."

Frank remembered his cigarette, spying it still in Gerard's hand. Reaching for it, Gerard too realised that he still had hold of it and handed it back to Frank with a small apology. While Frank lit up his cigarette, Gerard leaned over to get one of his own from the carton on the side, holding out his hand for Frank's lighter, which the younger boy gladly obliged to hand over.

The first drag felt like heaven in Frank's lungs, the smoke filling his chest smoothly, the grey wisps dancing past his eyes as he exhaled. He smiled a relaxed smile, looking across at Gerard.

"Thanks buddy."

"No problem," he gently bumped Frank's shoulder and took a drag on his own cigarette, turning his attention back to the TV.

After a few minutes of watching the charismatic Count Dracula strut about, giving Winona Rider the eye, something occurred to Frank that he was surprised he'd never really asked about before.

"Hey, Gee?"

"Yep?" Gerard popped the 'p' again, turning his head to Frank and smiling softly.

Frank chewed his lip ring momentarily, "What was it like, when Mikey got turned? I just realised, I've never really asked..."

"Oh..." Gerard looked away, smile dropping as he tipped his head back and thought for a moment, "Well... at first, we were all a bit worried because Mikey hadn't come home. You remember us calling asking where he was, don't you?"

"Yeah, yeah... then Pete brought him home, right?"

"Uh-huh... Pete had already told us that he was a vampire, and we were all cool with it 'cause... uh." Gerard stopped for a second, then shrugged like he hadn't, "We have relative who're vampires, so... yeah. Anyway, my parents were a bit pissed at Pete for turning him so young but they got over it all pretty quick because Mikey was still a bit... unpredictable?" Gerard sounded uncertain.

"What even happens, when...? You know, someone gets turned?"

Gerard fidgeted uncomfortably, glancing at Frank but not making eye contact. Frank didn't see this as normal behaviour for Gerard, not when he was around Frank, at least. Moving away from the wall and sitting cross legged beside Gerard, facing him directly, Frank poked his arm gently.

"What's got you all shy?"

"It's just, uh... the way a vampire claims a person. It's like... usually..." he whispered the end of the sentence, completely inaudible to Frank.

"Huh? Sorry, you're mumbli-"

"During sex." Gerard repeated, perhaps a little louder than necessary, "Vampires normally claim people during sex because of all the blood rushing around and all the chemicals active in the brain, the change is faster and more effective because the venom has more access to everything that needs changing in the body's chemistry."

"Oh." Frank said shortly, understanding why Gerard hadn't really wanted to talk about it; no one wanted to think of their younger brother having sex, "Sorry."

"No, no, it's okay." Gerard waved his cigarette, flapping ash everywhere, "It's kinda good that you asked; lots of people don't know how it works so they don't know when they might be at risk."

Frank frowned down at his knees, "You don't mind me asking all this stuff, do you?"

"No... I mean," Gerard glanced at Frank, seemingly scanning his face, "You're almost out of highschool, and well... you're attractive. You're gonna get claimed at some point, I reckon. You've got that," he waved a hand, gesturing at Frank's entire body and sighing heavily, "look that's pretty vamp-ish anyway." He brought his cigarette to his lips again and took a long deep drag, exhaling the smoke through clenched teeth.

Frank couldn't help but blush; there would always be a small bit of him that thought Gerard was cute in a dorky, grubby kind of way. On the few days Gerard actually made an effort with his appearance, Frank had had to stop himself from staring. Even now, he could see the devilishly handsome man underneath the baggy pyjamas and unwashed hair, and was utterly flattered that Gerard would call him attractive.

"You really think a guy would want to claim me?"

"Well, female vampires can claim people too, so don't worry."

"Why..." Frank frowned, "Why would I worry?"

Gerard looked at him like it was obvious, "Straight guys normally worry about being stuck with a guy vamp, but no one ever really gets told that fema-"

"Gee, I'm gay?"

"Huh?"

"I'm gay," Frank repeated, "I've been out since I was fourteen. Did..." he snickered, "Did you think I was straight?"

"Oh!" Gerard's eyes rose more than Frank had ever seen them do so before, his eyes being widened, lashes looking longer and eyes more bright and golden, "I just, um... I didn't know. Uh... sorry, Frank!" he laughed nervously, "Damn, it's a fucking epidemic!"

Frank laughed too, "What do you mean, epidemic?"

"I thought... I, uh. Well, me and Mikey are both gay, and so's Pete, and so are you. It's just like... I don't think I have any straight friends!" he giggled and took another drag, his fast little laugh making Frank grin too.

"Oh, wow. You're gay too?" Gerard nodded, "We're just a huge bunch of homos, aren't we!"

"Yeah! That's cra-azy!"

"Yeah..." Frank smiled and sat back for a moment, having almost forgotten his own cigarette and taking a long drag, before leaning over and stubbing it out on the little ashtray on Gerard's bedside table, "So, hey?"

"Hm?"

"You know a lot about all this, so... You know how Pete and Mikey have to kinda... feed from each other?"

"Yeah?" Gerard stubbed out his own smoke, stretching his arms and rolling his head to look at Frank again.

"What about before Pete claimed him? Like... 'Cause I know his whole family at vampires, did he just hunt animals in the forest until he claimed Mikey?"

"Sometimes that happens with vampire families, but that generally makes really weak vampires." Gerard explained, "But if his family were registered, then any child with indentified vampirism would get an allotted blood allowance per week to feed on until they Sire someone. Their weekly intake gets reassessed each year, then they have to notify the government when they 'find a mate'," Gerard put finger quotes around the phrase; Frank knew it was a term used by the government that was a bit politically incorrect, "Because they can live off their Sired vampires blood and animal blood from then on with no health risk."

"Oh, that's pretty cool..." Frank nodded, sitting back a little bit, "But then do Sired vampires get blood allowance too?"

"Nope, they just need their Sire's blood and animals. It's pretty simple that way."

"Huh..." Frank slumped against the wall again, thinking back to the plastic packets in the refrigerator in the kitchen.

"So, wait," he sat up again, "What about the blood downstairs?"

Gerard's shoulders seemed to tense, "Like I said, they're for Mikey, just in case."

"In case of what?"

"I don't know... Pete not being around?" He sank lower against the wall, shoulders hunched up tight.

"But he needs Pete's blood- specifically Pete's blood. That stuff's useless..."

Frank stopped. He looked at Gerard, whose eyes were now glued on the TV screen. He wasn't watching the film, though. He was just looking ahead instead of looking at Frank. His hands were wrapped around each elbow protectively, and his legs had gone visibly stiff. Frank realised.

"Gerard... a-are you... a vampire?"

"N-no."

"Gee?" Frank knelt up, putting a hand gently on Gerard's shoulder and feeling him jump under the light touch.

"I-I'm not a vampire," he shook his head, "I'm... I just have vampirism."

"You... You are a vampire?"

"I said I'm not a fucking vampire!" Gerard shouted, turning to glare at Frank, his dark hazel irises flashing scarlet and startling Frank. So much so, in fact, that he fell backwards, hitting his head on the wall.

"Fuck! Shit..." Frank held the back of his head, scowling at Gerard, "What the fuck was that for?"

"I'm not a fucking vampire, Frank. Vampires are in books and movies. I just suffer from Vampirism." He sighed, "It's different."

"But... Y-you're still like Pete?"

"Yeah..." Gerard sighed.

Frank picked up the television remote from beside Gerard and paused the film, his full attention now on his companion.

"I... Gee, I had no idea."

"Only my parents, Mikey and Pete know," Gerard wiped his nose on the back of his hand and sniffed, "I just didn't... I knew I'd have you asking questions, and I didn't know how to... handle it all."

"You know I'd have been totally respectful if I knew, right?" Frank put his hand on Gerard's shoulder again, much more wary now though, "Like, if you didn't – or don't – want to answer any questions, that's totally fine."

"No, no, I-I need to explain it to you," Gerard sniffed again, unfolding his arms and turning to look at Franks eyes shining with unspilt tears, "I mean, I'm twenty one years old, I should be able to fucking handle this shit, right?" he laughed, making Frank smile a little, "So, what do you want to know?"

Frank raised his eyebrows, thinking for a moment.

"Oh, urm... so, you're like Pete, you were born like this?"

"Yeah. And, yes, Mikey is perfectly normal, and so are my parents. I'm one of those," he lifted his hands and wiggled his fingers menacingly, "Anomalous ones. Pretty sure it's some kind of recessive gene though."

"Right... That'd make sense..." Frank nodded to himself, thinking over what he should ask next, "Um... have you ever... Uh, nearly, you know? Sired a vampire?"

Gerard looked away and fidgeted, "No... I-it's one of those things there you know the moment's right. Or so I've been told." He nodded awkwardly, "Like... I've only slept with one guy before, but I didn't feel the urge to bite him and claim him. It's like..." he sighed, "Claiming someone is like a totally unbreakable marriage. You're physically bonded for the rest of your lives, you have a dependency on one another, and it's... It's true love. There's no way to break it. Bonded for life." Gerard gave another shrug and started picking at a loose thread on the hem of his t-shirt.

"So... Pete and Mikey... that's it for them? There's never going to be anyone else, 'til death do they part?" he raised an eyebrow, by Gerard just smiled.

"They're going to be together for the rest of their lives, yeah, but death's not gonna part them. See... If Pete dies, the part of him that lives in Mikey's blood will die too, and Mikey will just..." Gerard made a motion with his hand, "Slip away. If Mikey's goes first, then Pete will fade within three days. He'll have lost his partner and his body will have become so reliant on Mikey for affection and blood that it'll just gently shut down. Totally painless deaths, so long as you aren't the first to die, 'cause pretty much anything can kill you anyway."

"So vampire immortality is a myth?"

"Uh-huh, though we live a little longer than most and age slower. We can get to one hundred and thirty years old and still only look about sixty, so there's that..." Gerard shrugged and grinned.

Frank smiled, thinking about Pete and Mikey for a moment. They now had eternal happiness together, and death could only bring them back together again in the end. It was a rather beautiful way to live, really. Frank couldn't see how it could be a bad thing, or why most people were so against Vampirism.

Gerard was, in a way, completely right; he wasn't a vampire. Well, at least not the ones in books. They didn't go around killing people, and they didn't have to hide from sunlight; they weren't immortal; they weren't defeated by silver, garlic, and holy water; and they most certainly were not evil.

Gerard was the most gentle and sensitive person Frank knew, Mikey was somewhat delicate and soft-spoken, and Pete was friendly and really only a danger to himself if he had too much coffee. They were totally normal, other than their dark good looks and biological need to consume blood.

"You said that you just 'know' when you've met the person you want to claim, right?"

Gerard nodded, "Yeah. I mean, I've heard from people who have been paired already, but I can't be sure. Apparently it's like this... pull. No matter what, you just can't keep away from them; there's always going to be something that keeps yours and their paths crossing. It's inescapable."

"So you don't know what that feels like yet?" Frank tilted his head to the side as he watched Gerard think for a few seconds. When their eyes met again, Frank could have sworn he'd seen a golden flash in Gerard's eyes, not even for half a second.

"I don't think so. I mean..." Gerard's voice because very soft, "There's been times where I thought 'maybe it's him', but nothing definite."

"Did you think it was the guy you slept with?" Frank chewed on his lip ring, strangely uncomfortable with the idea of Gerard having a boyfriend.

"Oh, no." Gerard smiled and shook his head, "Not even for a second. There was nothing drawing us together, no raging urge to bite him, and we broke up after a couple of months, so..." he shrugged.

Frank ceased tugging his lip ring with his teeth and eyes Gerard, "You don't mind me asking who you might have wanted to... claim, do you?"

"Oh..." Gerard looked away and fell totally silent for a long moment, his fingers still fiddling with the loose threads on his shirt, "That is... urm. Hm." He hummed, frowning to himself, "This is... fuck it." He sighed and sat up straight, looking Frank dead in the eyes, "You remember the whole of the last year I was at Belleville, and you kept walking into whatever classroom I was in? Like... all the time?"

"Oh, when I'd be looking for my teachers but you'd always be..."

"Yeah, well... that."

Frank stopped. "Oh."

Gerard smiled shyly at Frank, then averted his gaze again, nodding slightly.

Frank recalled that year. It had been Frank's first year at Belleville, but Gerard's last. He knew that Gerard was Mikey's brother, and always found it a little odd that no matter which school block he was in, if he needed to chase up a teacher about homework or a missed test, Gerard would be around, either already talking to the teacher or just in the classroom alone (which only really happened in the music block or the art classrooms).

"Di... Urm, wow. Okay," Frank awkwardly scratched the back of his head, just as Gerard reached up to do the same, laughing shyly and lowering his hand when he noticed, "Did you... How did you, like, start thinking... you know?"

"Whenever I saw you, my jaw just clenched, like some kind of weird instinct. And you know that pain you get kinda behind your ears when you eat something really sour?" Frank nodded, "Well, yeah, it was like that. I think I kinda had a crush on you anyway," Gerard looked away again, "But I just tried to ignore it because you're my kid brother's best friend and you were, like, fifteen when all this was going on. But then... Mikey got turned, and I saw how my family reacted, and I knew that even if I wanted to claim you or whatever, I was gonna wait. By the time your eighteenth came around though, all the... feelings had subsided."

"Oh. Right."

Frank didn't know if he felt disappointed or not. He'd always kind of liked Gerard in a somewhat romantic way, but if he'd known there was a chance with him from so early on, he would have kept a closer eye on the older Way brother. On the plus side, he wasn't biologically dependant on another human being. Yet.

Gerard had said he was ideal vampire Siring material, which had given Frank a moment of wanting the blood lusting attention.

"You, uh... You alright?"

"Yeah, 'm fine," Frank shook his head and took a deep breath, "I-if it makes you feel less guilty or anything for crushing on a fifteen year old kid, I always kinda liked you too." He paused, thinking for a second and looking up at Gerard, "And maybe I still do a bit? Uh... Yeah. So there's that."

"Oh." Gerard said, finally taking his turn to be surprised. His eyebrows rose, but not by much, and his eyes remained trained on Frank's face, seeming to be drinking more of him in now, "Okay."

"Okay." Frank smiled, feeling as though they'd reached the end of a conversation, and simultaneously started a new one.

 

"A-" Gerard opened his mouth and started to speak, but thought better of it and shut his mouth again, leaving the one half-syllable hanging in the air between them.

"What?"

"I was gonna ask..." Gerard blushed once more, keeping a straight face this time, "Could I kiss you? Or... would that be too weird, because I know that we've got a pretty good friendship, and I'm like, so much older tha-"

"Yes." Frank cut in, stopping Gerard dead in his tracks. He felt a grin tug at his lips as soon as he'd said the one word, and it seemed to be catching.

"You... You wouldn't mind?" Gerard tried to hide his smile, but it really wasn't working and Frank could see exactly how much he wanted to kiss him.

"No, I... I'd kinda like it if you did, really."

"Oh!" Gerard grinned, not saying anything else.

They stopped again, Frank watching Gerard, Gerard watching Frank, each apparently expecting the other to make the first move. After a few somewhat awkward moments, Frank took the initiative and knelt up, shuffling forwards and placing a hand on Gerard's shoulder. He was a little higher than Gerard now, the older boy looking up at him like he held the stars and all the heavens in his eyes, Gerard's own golden hazel eyes shining like two harvest moons.

Tentatively Frank leaned closer to Gerard, and Gerard lifted his chin a little, gaze flitting from Frank's eyes to his lips. Frank was hesitant to close his eyes, but the moment he felt the warmth of Gerard's breath on his lips, he closed them and pressed forwards.

At first, all he could feel was his lips pressed against Gerard's, not really doing anything. Then, Gerard's lips moved, pouting and pressing against his, enticing him to move with them. It wasn't like Frank hadn't kissed people before, he'd kissed four, maybe five people, and soon his brain started working again, and he remembered how to kiss back.

Then, they were kissing, and Frank could feel a tight ball of energy in the pit of his stomach, willing him on, willing his lips to move against Gerard's, top pull back a little and press back into the kiss, to melt against Gerard's touch when he placed a hand on Frank's hip, to open his lips to Gerard's tongue, and then to pull away.

They looked at each other for a second or two, Gerard swallowing hard as his eyes flickered between each of Frank's.

"Was... what that okay?" he asked nervously, still too close to Frank to focus on his face properly.

"Yeah," Frank breathed, smiling, "That was... fucking more than okay!"

"You wanna... go again?" Gerard's eyes sparkled, the bright gold sparks no longer something Frank could brush off as a trick of the light. His irises were pulsing, rippling almost, with bright, shining colour, emerald and copper, flashes of silver drawing Frank in.

He didn't reply verbally, only pressing his lips back against Gerard's and kissing him deeply, Gerard instantly kissing him back with just as much enthusiasm.

Frank had to admit, it was a little odd to be kissing someone who he'd grown up with and always seen as a brother of sorts. But at the same time, that thought was pretty much obscured entirely by the fact that Gerard was an incredible kisser. His lips were smooth and soft, his tongue barely-there and not forceful, his hands firm on Frank's waist, his head tilted left, just right for Frank.

Frank himself shuffled closer, Gerard sensing his movements and unfolding his legs, allowing Frank to kneel as close to him as possible, Gerard's thighs either side of his own.

They kissed like this for a while, Gerard's hands slipping up to Frank's waist, fingers inching under his hitched up shirt to gently grip as his soft skin as the older man pulled him closer. Leaning down to try and kiss past Gerard's jaw, Frank lost his balance, rocking the two of them backwards so that he was kneeling over Gerard. Worried that he may have made things a little weird, Frank broke away from Gerard's lips, and was about to stammer an apology when Gerard's eyes flashed gold and he grabbed the front of Frank's shirt, pulling him down again into a hot, messy kiss.

Frank made a sound of surprise as he felt Gerard's knees move beside his own legs, one of them hooking around the back on his knee and pinning their bodies together. Frank almost lost his balance on his arms, one elbow giving out and almost causing his face to smash into Gerard's. The kiss broke again, Frank looking at the older man in a slightly startled way. Gerard, however, was looking like the epitome of 'gone'; he was panting hard, flushed from his cheeks to his collarbones, exposed by the stretched out collar of his t-shirt; his lips red and a little swollen from their ferocious making out, twisted into a slight smirk; his eyes heavy lidded, dark lashes spidery and feminine, irises practically glowing as he gazed up at Frank.

"I-I didn-"

"Frank, sshh," Gerard pressed a finger to Frank's lips, smiling gently, "It's okay, alright? If you're okay, then I'm okay."

"I just... Fuck, I've wanted this. For so long, I wanted this since... Since I was sixteen, at least," Frank eyes flitted around Gerard's pale, pretty face as he sat up, kneeling back again, "And now it's happening, I just... what the fuck do I do?"

"Sshh, Frank, it's okay," Gerard sat back up again too and brought a hand to Frank's face, caressing Frank's cheek tenderly, the boy instinctively leaning into the touch, "I can show you, Frankie, don't worry." His thumb brushed Frank's bottom lip, making the boy's eyes fly open at the gentle touch. Gerard was looking at him with almost fearsome lust, eyes bright and wanting as his thumb pulled Frank's lip down, the younger anticipating Gerard's next move.

Sure enough, Gerard leaned forwards again and, tugging Frank's lip with his thumb again, slotted their lips together in the most perfect way, Frank leaning into the kiss and wanting more again. He must have sensed Frank's eagerness as Gerard started kissing him faster, not in a messy way as they had done before, but more passionate, deliberate, careful. His hands rested on Frank's shoulders, one sliding behind his neck and pulling him closer as Frank's hands rest around Gerard's neck, looping and holding him there.

The hand resting on Frank's shoulder started moving after a while, slipping to the front of his shirt and going for the collar and undoing the button, pausing for Frank's objection. But no objection came. Frank instead kissed Gerard harder, arching his back a little, wanting Gerard to undo his shirt, wanting to know Gerard really wanted him.

Gerard's fingers moved to the next button down, then the next, and the next, and the next, sliding the thin cotton off Frank's shoulders and kissing from his lips, to his jaw, to his neck. Frank tilted his head back a little, breath hitching at the feather light kisses, Gerard's lips brushing against his skin between each kiss making Frank writhe in anticipation. Then Gerard's teeth nipped at his skin, making Frank gasp. At first, it was in blissful shock, feeling the sharp pain and knowing it was dark, strange Gerard who was making his feel this way. Then he remembered that dark, strange Gerard had the power to end his life with a snap of his jaw.

"Gee... Gerard, Ger-" Frank's slightly panicked words were cut off by Gerard smashing their lips back together with such passionate force that Frank couldn't help but groan loudly.

"What is it, Frankie," Gerard asked breathily, pulling back from Frank's lips and looking at him attentively, though Frank couldn't miss the desire in his eyes.

"I don't.... Are you gonna... Gonna bite me?"

"Only if you want me to, baby," Gerard smirked, a shiver running down Frank's spine.

"No... I mean..." he took a breath, "Claim me. Are you-"

"Only if you want me to." Gerard cut in, the smirk on his lips softening with sincerity, eyes bright as he looked from Frank's eyes down to his half exposed chest.

"Y-you want to?" Frank's voice started to shake, biting his lip to stop it from shaking too.

"If you'd let me," Gerard looked at him, obviously realising how nervous Frank was as the look of desire in his eyes was replaced by one of sincerity, "I told you, I've wanted you for over three years but I've never known what to do about it. I would have said something but I'd be scared you wouldn't want anything to do with me anymore, and I couldn't deal with that. If... if you want me to bite you, and claim you, I will. I swear to God I will." 

 

The hungry look was back in his eyes, a look that told Frank every word Gerard spoke was to be taken as gospel truth.

"I'd be yours forever, Frankie. And you'd be mine. You'd never be in pain again; you'd never get hurt, never break, never be sick again..." Gerard kept eye contact with Frank, moving so that he too was kneeling up, putting an arm around Frank's waist, "I can make you beautiful, more beautiful than you are even now," Gerard gently kissed Frank's cheek, the younger boy's eyes fluttering shut as Gerard continued to speak, "And I can love you, I'll protect you," Gerard's lips started ghosting down Frank's neck again, every syllable giving Frank goosebumps, "You'll never have to be alone, I'll give you anything you could ever want Frankie. Everything you could need," He kissed Frank's neck, slow and softly, "Everything... Fuck," his breathing shook as he took a breath, inhaling Frank's scent, "Please, Frankie, I wanna make you mine. I want you so bad, I fucking need you."

Gerard had switched from sweet and sincere to hot and demanding. Frank could feel Gerard's skin practically vibrating against his own, hot and shaking but his hands still so gentle on Frank's sides, barely touching him.

"Gerard, I... Do you love me?" Frank breathed, lowering his head so his temple rested against the side of Gerard's head.

"Of course I fucking love you," Gerard sounded as though it was the most obvious thing in the world, "If I didn't I wouldn't be doing this, offering you this. Me and you, we'd be so fucking perfect, we'd be happy forever. I can give you happiness for the rest of your life, Frankie, do you want that? Happiness with me?"

Frank thought for a moment, a million confusing emotions running through his head, a million reasons why he shouldn't do this. What about his parents, the total dependency he'd have on Gerard, and Gerard's dependency on him, where they would live, the fact that Frank would never have another boyfriend other than Gerard from the moment he was bitten? He'd be Gerard's forever.

He'd be Gerard's forever, and Gerard would be his.

After a moment of thinking, Frank knew the answer.

"I-I do."

Gerard's head shot up, sparkling eyes looking at him in surprise, "Really? You want that... me? Us?"

"You said it's basically guaranteed happiness and... Well, you're already one of my best friends and I wouldn't want to lose you from my life," Gerard seemed a little disheartened, so Frank carried on, "But I... I've liked you for a while. Like, for as long as you've liked me... You said, we were drawn together, and... Fuck," Frank blushed and ran a hand through his hair, "I guess it's meant to be. Just... Fuck, do it. I want to," he looked over Gerard again, heart racing in his chest as he spied the slight tent in Gerard's pyjama pants, "I-I want you. I want you now, and tomorrow. And next week, next month, next year..."

"Oh, fuck. Frankie," Gerard lunged at his lips again, and Frank could feel the passion fever raging inside Gerard, and knew that the fever was contagious.

Soon, Gerard had pushed Frank back and was sat over him, wrestling with the rest of the buttons on the younger boy's shirt, licking his lips and panting above a both startled and turned-on Frank. As soon as the last button was open, Gerard threw open Frank's shirt and tore off his own t-shirt, throwing it somewhere on the floor and pressing himself as close to Frank as he could. Gerard's soft torso, pale and almost hairless, felt like heaven against Frank's as the older man started kissing his neck again, moving down to his collarbones and biting gently, sucking at the spot and making Frank whimper. Frank's heart was thrumming against his ribs as Gerard moved lower still, biting just beside his nipple and darkening the skin into a perfect red and purple love bite. Frank glanced down and caught Gerard's eye as he moved across a little, licking at Frank's nipple with a dark devious look playing in his eyes. Frank's dick twitched in his pants as he watched Gerard suck at the small pink nub, feeling his tongue flicking around it, making him groan and shiver as he pressed a hand to the back of Gerard's head, begging for more. He felt Gerard grin against his skin, then detach his lips, earning a somewhat dissatisfied gasp from Frank. Gerard just grinned again, obviously loving the reactions he was getting from Frank, and started kissing lower, down past Frank's naval.

He reached a hand towards the zip of Frank's jeans, looking to Frank for any hesitation in the boys face, but Frank didn't have time for tentative touches and uncertainty. Before Gerard could even lay a finger on the zip, Frank's hands were fumbling with getting it undone, raising his hips off the bed and wrestling the jeans off his hips. Silently, Gerard moved back and helped to remove them completely, again throwing them somewhere across the room, then leaned back over Frank and kissed him deeply. One hand was rested beside Frank's head, holding the older man over him, the other hand holding Frank's side tenderly and squeezing gently now and then. It wasn't enough for Frank though.

The younger boys hands went for Gerard's pyjama bottoms and he hooked his thumbs into the elasticated waistband, knowing that Gerard either wore underpants or pyjama pants and never both. Gerard didn't try to stop him, and so Frank slid the loose fabric down Gerard's hips. Gerard moaned against Frank's lips as he fidgeted, trying to help get them all the way off of his legs, eventually grunting and sitting back to pull them off.

With Gerard sat back like that, Frank could see all of him, every inch. He'd only seen Gerard shirtless for very brief moments before, due to him being so shy and insecure, but really Frank found him quite beautiful. His chest was pale and flat, his stomach and sides holding a little pudge, hips somewhat rounded, and Frank just outright wanted to grab his thighs and ass with both hands and go face-first between his legs and get more acquainted with Gerard's dick. It was bigger than Frank's, thicker and darker and didn't seem to have that slight curve to the left that Frank's did.

Frank was only staring for a few seconds, but it was probably a few seconds too long because when he looked back up at Gerard's face, he was smiling awkwardly and blushing. Frank smiled softly at him and reached for his hand, pulling him closer and laying back down.

"You're gorgeous, you know?" he said, barely above a whisper. "I've known you for so long, and I know I should have said it sooner, and it sounds so dumb, but you are." Gerard's eyes glittered again, the colours of his irises fluttering like leaves in the wind.

"I don't know that, no... But, Frankie, you're so beautiful," Gerard kissed him again, muttering again his lips, "Fucking beautiful... pretty boy... mine..."

Frank's breath hitched into a whimper, and Gerard's hands slid down his sides, taking hold of his underwear and pulling them down and freeing Frank, leaving them both just as exposed as one another. Gerard got rid of the garment fast, then looked down at Frank, his eyes lighting up in a way that made Frank feel so vulnerable yet so turned on.

"Shit, Frankie..." Gerard knelt back, his hands skipping up again down Frank's thighs and he stared at the younger boy hungrily, "Even your dick's pretty."

Frank's dick lay on his stomach, half hard and pink, and visibly twitched at Gerard's words, making the older man gasp and groan. He bit his lip and laughed softly as he knelt down, lowering his face until it was level with Frank's crotch. He licked his lips and grinned up at Frank, who was watching him with parted lips, breathing hard.

"I wanted to do this for so fucking long." Gerard said softly, eyeing Frank with a twisted smirk on his lips.

Before Frank could reply, Gerard had taken his dick into his warm, wet mouth and Frank couldn't help but groan in pleasure.

"A-aa-ah... f-fuck!" Gerard looked back up to Frank through his eyelashes, his dark gaze only turning Frank on more. Gerard moved slowly, wanting to get Frank has hard as he could first, wanting this to be as good as it possibly could be for Frank.

Under the pleasure Frank was feeling, a sensation to extreme he could feel his heartbeat in his toes, there was a thick layer of nerves. Sure, he'd had drunken fumbles with a three or four guys at parties, but school had never really been a hotspot for gay men, so he'd never had a boyfriend, and he'd never had sex. He'd heard that it hurt, and this was bound to if Gerard was going to claim him. Frank had seen the large bite mark on Mikey's neck, the way it had looked so painful in the first few weeks after his transformation, and the way the now healed scar shone a kind of rose gold colour in the right kind of sunlight. Mikey wore it like a badge of honour these days, when once it had been the cause of an extensive scarf collection.

"Ge-Gerar... fuck," he whimpered as Gerard continued to bob his head, slowly and steadily, "Gerard, wait."

The black haired man pulled off, looking suddenly worried, "What is it?"

"I-I've never had sex before."

"Oh... Frankie, if you don't w-"

"No, no," Frank interrupted, feeling a little odd about them having a conversation literally over his dick, "I want this, I'm just... nervous? Or... I don't know."

"What about?" Gerard eyes were heavy with concern, which only warmed Frank's heart with how much it showed that he cared.

"It's gonna hurt, isn't it?"

"H-having sex? Oh, so, urm... So you're a bottom then?"

"I guess so..." Frank blushed, feeling a little stupid and angry at himself for being so suddenly bashful, "I mean, I just assumed you'd be... y'know... me?"

Gerard smiled a little and blinked a few times, dark lashes fluttering, "That... uh, that works, yeah. It'll probably hurt a little, but it goes away after a while..."

"And... the bite?" Frank frowned, feeling really stupid for asking now, his usual tough, confident, angry punk front gone completely. Gerard leaned forwards, faster than Frank realised the man could move unless he was offered coffee. He gently took Frank's face in his hand, stroking his thumb across the younger boy's flushed cheek and smiled softly.

"It probably will, yeah. But I'll be right with you, and it feels good after, I promise... And if it doesn't then you have the right to hit me, okay?"

Frank smiled back at him, still a little nervous, but excited too, "Okay, yeah."

Gerard grinned like a kid at Christmas and closed the gap between them with an enthusiastic kiss, Frank's hands reaching up on instinct to hold Gerard's face as their lips moved together. The older man's hands found their way onto Frank again, one reaching up into his hair, the other pressing flat against the small of his back, pinning them together.

Shifting slightly in Gerard's grip, Frank's erection rubbed against Gerard's soft hip and his own hips bucked suddenly, inhaling sharply through his nose. He could feel Gerard smirking against his lips, pressing their lower halves together a little harder, bodies rocking against one another. It gave them both something, but nowhere near enough, until Frank felt Gerard's hand sneaking lower and lower on his back, until it came to rest firmly on his right ass cheek.

Frank's hips bucked again and he broke away from the kiss with a gasp as Gerard squeezed his ass, fingers digging into his soft flesh and taking the opportunity to kiss and suck at the younger boy's neck. Frank instantly threw his head back as Gerard's teeth started nipping at this skin, then attached themselves firmly and sucked hard again, a dark bruise forming fast under his lips. Gerard's fingers continued to knead at Frank's ass, creeping closer and closer to his hole, pulling his cheeks apart and making Frank's breathing shake.

"Fuck... fuck, fuck, fuck..." Gerard gasped against Frank's neck, "I need to... shit, hang on," he pressed a firm, lingering kiss to Frank's lips and clambered off the bed, "I'll be right back, 'kay?"

"Okay," Frank replied, heart pounding hard in his chest as he sat back and smiled, biting his lips as Gerard walked up the basement stairs, pausing at the door then rushing out of sight into the rest of the house, ass and thighs jiggling a little as he went, making Frank smirk even more. He took a deep breath, thinking about how that gorgeous, grabbable ass would feel, all tensed up, as he thrust into Frank, thighs shaking with every snap of his hips. Frank couldn't help but reach down and stroke himself gently, not wanting to get too close too fast, but needing some kind of touch at the thought of what was about to happen.

Considering he'd gone to prom with no date, no friends, and intentions of only sneaking Pete and Mikey in for a bit then going and getting drunk with them, his night was turning out better than he could ever had expected, though he was trying to keep his mind off what would be the ultimate end to the night.

A few moments later, while Frank had his head tipped back, bottom lip caught between his teeth, hand palming at his almost fully hard dick, Gerard came back into the room, holding a small pink bottle, his own dick bouncing slightly between his legs.

"Fuck, Frankie," he looked at the younger boy, eyes flashing pure gold from where he stood at the top of the stairs. Frank blushed, letting go of himself and looked at Gerard as he hurried down the stairs, stalked over to the bed and, tangling a hand in Frank's hair, pulled the two of them together into a passionate kiss. Frank was almost dragged up by his hair, but the tight pulling on his scalp made him moan loudly and unexpectedly into Gerard's mouth.

After some shuffling of bodies and limbs, Frank was pinned to the mattress by Gerard's body, the older man laying between his legs and rocking against him slightly as they kissed heatedly, Frank's legs hooked tightly to Gerard's hips.

"Gee... Can you... uh... you know..."

"What? Sorry," Gerard pulled away from Frank a little looking down at their chests, "A-am I crushing you?"

"No, no... I-I just... Fuck, I need you... Can you please-"

"Oh, oh!" Gerard realised what Frank was asking, a bright smirk playing on his lip, "You want me to start prepping you?"

"Yeah... yeah, please..." Frank panted, as Gerard started kissing down his chest again, keeping eye contact the whole time and enrapturing Frank with his hungry gaze.

"How do you want to do this?" Gerard asked, murmuring slightly as his lips were still against Frank's skin, "Like, on your knees, or your ba-"

"On my back, so... so I can see you." Frank felt a little stupid saying so, but it obviously had a positive effect on Gerard as the older man gasped softly, a moan rattling in the back of his throat as he grabbed a pillow from beside Frank's head and crawled further down the bed, tucking the pillow under Frank's hips, then started to kiss the inside of Frank's thighs, working closer and closer to where Frank was aching to be touched.

As Gerard got closer, the more Frank opened his legs, until Gerard could get no closer and Frank would open his legs no wider. Gerard's started very gently kissing along the length of Frank cock, but never took it into his mouth. Frank didn't mind though; the kisses, though torturous and a little strange, both aroused him and made his heart swell with affection for Gerard, wishing that they could have had their first time a long time ago, wishing that he wasn't so nervous, and flattered that Gerard was taking such good care of him.

"Okay... urm," Gerard picked up the bottle he'd brought with him, Frank already knowing it was lubricant, "Do you, uh... know how many," he raised his hand and wiggled his fingers, before blushing and hanging his head with a laugh, "God, this is so fucking awkward! Ugh..."

"I know, right?" Frank laughed, sitting up on his elbows and looking at Gerard, who was watching him nervously through his lank hair, "Just, fuck... urm, Just start with one, okay, a-and then... I don't know, I've not done this before."

"You ever, you know... fingered yourself, though?"

Frank's heart thudded a little uncomfortably at the question, "A few times, yeah, but... like, the angle and shit, it's not, urm... Fuck, just do it."

"You sure, 'cause if you're not-"

"I want to, okay, but all this talking is making things weirder than they need to be. Not like they're weird to begin with or anything..."

"Okay, okay..." Gerard opened the cap on the bottle, coating three fingers and wiping one hand on the sheets, then resting it on Frank's thigh, "Just... relax, yeah? I'll go slow."

"Okay," Frank lay back as Gerard's hand slid under his knee, lifting his right leg and pressing a finger to his entrance. The digit was a little cold, and it was definitely a strange sensation, but it slid in easily. Frank tensed for a moment, then relaxed again as Gerard started to move it in and out slightly, a second finger joining it soon after. That certainly felt strange, but not painful, until Gerard slid them both in as far as he could.

Frank's immediate reaction was to hiss slightly and tighten around Gerard's fingers, while raising his knee a little closer to his chest, hoping it would open him up more.

"You okay?" Gerard asked gently, fingers still.

"Yeah... just keep going, I'll get used to it."

"Okay, baby," Gerard's voice was soft and sweet, though from the angle he was laying at, Frank couldn't see the tiny, loving smile on Gerard's face, or the way he leaned down to pepper kisses along Frank's raised thigh, his leg now resting over Gerard's shoulder as he thrust two fingers slowly in and out of the boy beneath him.

The third finger hurt, but Frank managed to keep his complaints down to small groans of discomfort, assuring Gerard that it was okay to keep going. Eventually the pain subsided to a low ache, and Frank's inhibitions about the situation had almost completely gone, another with any boundaries Gerard had.

The older man had his head pressed against Frank's hip, kissing and nipping at the skin there as he panted hard, his three fingers thrusting and curling inside Frank steadily, showing no signs of tiring any time soon.

"Gee... Gerard, I-I'm ready."

"You sure, baby?" the pet name rolled off of Gerard's tongue with such casual ease, Frank felt more excited and confident in Gerard knowing what he was doing with that one simple word.

"Yeah, I am."

"Okay, okay... Fuck, urm..." Gerard sat back again, flushed from his cheeks to his unpronounced collarbones, and removed his fingers from inside Frank. Frank whimpered at the loss, feeling strange and empty now, as Gerard looked around them on the bed.

"Where's the- ah!" Gerard lunged for something half under Frank's knee, holding it up triumphantly and grinning, "You sure you're ready?"

Frank smiled, heart pounding with anticipation and affection, "Surer than sure."

Gerard just grinned, eyes shimmering like his irises were infused with glitter and powdered gold, all his tiny little teeth on show, his chest rising fast as took an excited breath.

Looking away from Frank, Gerard turned his attention to the bottle in his hand, quickly opening it and squirting probably more than enough of its contents into his hand, quickly coating his dick in the pale pink gel. The way Gerard's hand moved along his shaft, the gently rocking of his hips, the way his bottom lip pouted slightly, lips parted as he panted , breath hitching with every other stroke made Frank whine with desperation.

"Fuck... fuck fuck fuck, okay..." Gerard wiped his hand on the sheet and moved Frank's legs further apart, one hand on the underside of the younger boy's thigh, the other holding himself at Frank's entrance, "If you need me to stop, just... just tell me, and I'll stop."

Frank couldn't tell how badly Gerard didn't want to stop until they were done, but he nodded anyway, fear welling in his chest again, "I will."

"Okay, okay right..." Gerard frowned in concentration as he looked down at his dick and Frank's ass, pressing the head against the pink punker and started to slide in.

In Frank's opinion, it was one of the most bazaar forms of pain he'd ever experienced. Despite the sensation causing tears to well in his eyes, he kept quiet, comforted by the knowledge that this was Gerard, and Gerard want to make him feel good, to take his virginity and made him his for the rest of their lives.

"I'm nearly in, baby, okay?" Gerard move his hand to cup Frank's cheek, stopping him movement to wipe away a stray tear rolling down Frank's cheek, "Just a few moments more... I'm sorry this hurts baby," he started pushing in again, making Frank gasp, "I'm sorry. I'll make it good for you, Frankie, I promise."

Just as Frank opened his mouth to reply, his words were cut off by a half sigh, half whimper, as he felt Gerard's hips meet his own, Gerard coming to a halt with a slight jolt.

"Fuck..." Gerard gasped, slumping a little as he held himself over Frank, "'Kay... You okay, Frankie?"

Frank nodded his head a little, though his face was scrunched up in discomfort as he tried to will away the ache that was Gerard's dick stretching him out in a way he'd never experienced before.

"Yeah, I'm fine..."

"I'm sorry," Gerard brushed his thumb over Frank's cheek again, where another tear has escaped and leaned down to kiss all over his chest, "You just... you need to stay relaxed, baby."

"One of my best friends has his dick in my ass, I think 'relax' is off the table right now," Frank laughed dryly, the action of laughing making his body jolt and shift himself on Gerard, "Ah, crap... Just, please... This hurts like a bitch."

"I know, I know... I'll make you feel good though," Gerard kissed all over Frank's chest again, then gently took one of Frank's nipples into his mouth, massaging it with his tongue in a way that make Frank stutter out a moan. He moved his lips off, rubbing the pink bud with his fingers as he went to suck the other one in an attempt to distract Frank from his next move.

But Frank was totally aware of Gerard pulling his hips back, moaning in pleasure and discomfort at the strange feeling. As Gerard thrust back in again, faster than the initial push, but still slow, he leaned forwards and kissed Frank, whose hands immediately flew up into Gerard's hair and around the back of his pale neck, whimpering against his lips.

"Shit, shit, shit... Frankie, baby..." Gerard muttered against Frank's lips, pulling his hips back again but halting as he spoke, "I need... t' move. I'll go slow, I promise, I j-"

"Okay, okay..." Frank whispered, eyes still screwed shut, mostly from frustration that he wasn't feeling pleasure straight away, "Just, yeah... go slow, I'll get used to it."

Feeling Gerard moving inside him was such a strange sensation, and Frank could almost feel the pleasure, but it was smothered by the weird ache of his inner walls. Frank hooked his hands over Gerard's shoulders as the older man moved above him, keeping true to his word and only moving in slow, steady thrusts. His eyes had fluttered shut and his lips were parted, the bottom one red and shining from Gerard biting it. He was clearly feeling the pleasure of it all, and Frank was feeling jealous, until Gerard thrust a little faster and a little deeper than his had before.

"O-oh..." Frank gasped, eyes flying open, fingers tightening on Gerard's shoulders momentarily.

Gerard stopped, and looked down at Frank, and smirked a little, pulling out and thrusting back in, a little harder again, and setting another small shock of pleasure through Frank. The younger boy gasped and let his eyes close as he felt his dick twitch, the feelings of pleasure starting to overtake the ache.

"That good?" Gerard asked, grinning widely, eyes sparkling gold.

"Y-yeah... do it again..."

Gerard pulled out, and thrust back in with the same force as before (which was still relatively gently), sending that same tiny spark of pleasure through Frank, just enough to make him moan a little and make his dick twitch.

"Shit..."

"You want me to move faster?" Gerard looked Frank in the eyes, his own filled with excitement and sincerity, and perhaps worry for Frank.

"Yeah, I-I can handle it." Frank nodded.

Gerard grinned, eyes flashing a dazzling gold as he leaned down and started kissing Frank's chest again, working up to his neck and collarbones, kissing and nipping at the skin there as he started pushing in again.

Soon enough, Gerard was no longer biting at the crook of Frank's neck, and had simply buried his face there, panting and muttering to the younger boy as he thrust in and out, the collision of their hips making a tiny slapping sounds now. Frank's arms had moved, wrapping around and under Gerard's, clawing slightly at his back, legs hooked around his hips, trying to meet Gerard's thrusts. His cupids-bow lips were slick and parted as he panted and groaned. He was still only feeling the smallest sparks of pleasure from Gerard being inside him, still not having that one electric spot hit dead on. The friction of Gerard's stomach on Frank's dick was, too, not quite enough, and Frank wanted so much more.

"Gerard... More.... I need..."

"Okay, baby, I've got you..." Gerard sat back, and lifted Frank by the curve of his lower back, shifting their bodies so that Frank's backside was half rested and half cradled by Gerard's thighs, Gerard's dick pressing into him at a deeper angle, his elegant by strong hands gripping his hips hard.

With the first few thrusts, Frank was gasping and moaning. Gerard's thrusts weren't as long, but deeper, harder, faster.

"Oh...f-fuck..." Frank tipped his head right back as Gerard hit his prostate dead-on, arching his back and pushing his ass harder against Gerard, willing him deeper and not caring about the ache anymore; he just needed Gerard.

"You okay, baby?" Gerard asked, pressing into Frank again, slower this time, making Frank whine.

"I'm more than okay, just don't slow down, Gee." Frank whined, feeling a little embarrassed that Gerard was seeing him like this, but quickly realising that Gerard was probably just as self conscious. Hell, Gerard had always been self conscious, that's why he wore baggy shirts and hoodies all the time, hiding behind his hair. To be naked in front of Frank must have been a huge step for Gerard, Frank thought to himself, as the gravity of the situation hit him again. He was going to be Gerard's by the end of this, and in turn, Gerard would be his.

His train of thought was derailed in a split second though, as Gerard thrust into him hard, making Frank see stars. Frank threw a hand up, bracing himself against the wall as Gerard continued the fast-paced snapping of his hips, and reached down to stroke himself, firm and slow.

He was in ecstasy. Nothing could compare, not even the way his own hands new every turn on, trick, twist. The way Gerard filled him up, the rocking of their bodies together, the distinctive smell of sweat and Gerard's bedroom and Gerard; God, he'd never smelt so good. It was the same lingering body odour surreptitiously covered up with a generic brand deodorant, paint, and dust. He smelt like he'd been living in an art supplies cupboard for weeks on end, and Frank just wanted to rub himself all over Gerard, pick up his scent and make sure he reeked of Gerard and sex for days to come.

Looking up at Gerard, Frank couldn't help but moan out loud; his eyes were dark, the irises having taken on a deep forest green hue, flecks of maroon shining through and adding to the look of pure lust on his face; his eyebrows were knitted together for the effort put into his thrusts; his teeth were gritted, the tendons in his neck standing out, his pale skin flushed all the way down to his shoulders.

Unable to stand such little contact with someone Frank considered so gorgeous, he moved his hand from the wall, and instead tangled it in Gerard's hair, pulling him down into a hard, deep kiss, both of them moaning. Gerard almost tasted the same way he smelt; sweat and lust, if it were possible for a person's tongue entangled with your own to taste of such a thing.

The older man groaned desperately into Frank's mouth, breaking away as his thrusts slowed a little, his black, straggly hair plastered to his forehead.

"Frank... Frankie, I'm close..." he panted, shutting his eyes as he physically tried to bring himself back from the edge. Frank allowed his hand to slide out of Gerard's dark locks, and instead rested it on his shoulder.

"So... so am I..." Frank continued to stroke himself, wanting and needing to cum, but knowing that when he did, Gerard would be sinking his teeth into his neck and changing both of their lives for the rest of the forever they would be spending together.

"Tell me when you're gonna cum, baby," Gerard lowered his head down to Frank's lips again, kissing him hard, but chastely, lips dragging wetly across the younger boy's cheek, peppering his skin with kisses until he was simply panting hotly against his neck, nosing at Frank's pulse point.

Frank felt Gerard's hips shift again, pulling out, pressing in, pulling out further, pressing in faster, until his hips were thrusting hard and deep into Frank. There were both panting and moan, sweating beading on their skin and rolling in salty streams down the contours of their bodies. All that could be heard in the room where their heavy breaths and the sound of skin on skin each time their hips met. Frank's head rolled back against the pillow, letting Gerard uselessly mouth at his neck, too far gone to kiss or bother to mark him up anymore than he already had. The younger boy's hand was still stroking along his length, each pump pushing him closer and closer to the edge.

"Come on, Frankie... Please, baby... cum for me..." Gerard hissed in his ear, voice deep and rough, the command ending on an uncontrolled groan of pleasure.

Frank whimpered as he sped up his hand, only slowing to thumb his slit, hips bucking then pushing back against Gerard's, burying the older man's cock as deep as he could take it.

Feeling that familiar, hot, knotting sensation in the pit of his stomach, Frank gasped, eyes screwed shut, and he knew he need to warn Gerard.

"Gee... I-I'm... gonna-ah...."

Frank came, hard, over his own hand, a hot wave of pleasure seeping through his body, muscles tensing, voice crying out in a strangled moan.

But his pleasure was cut short, feeling the satisfaction of his orgasm for not even a second before he was in intense pain.

As his orgasm had hit, still coming over his own hand, Gerard had sunken his teeth into Frank's neck. The pain was like nothing he'd experienced before; worse than piercings, skinned knees, broken bones. His eyes flew open, watering immediately. If he could have screamed, then he would, but no air could leave his mouth, he could only gasp in air, breath out through his nose, and feel his throat close up and prevent any noise passing his lips.

His neck throbbed, ached, pulsated with agony. He could feel each and every one of Gerard's teeth in his flesh with even the tiniest of movements. The space between Gerard's mouth and Frank's skin was slick and warm with Frank's own blood, spilling from the wound and staining his lover's lips and the pillow case.

While Frank was still paralysed with pain, Gerard slipped his hand beneath Frank's head, pulling him closer and sinking his teeth deeper still into Frank's soft flesh, drawing more and more blood from his body. He moaned around the metallic taste, savouring every drop, knowing that he couldn't go too far for risk of hurting Frank.

What Frank couldn't feel through the pain, however, was the steady seeping of venom into his bloodstream, from Gerard's mouth to Frank's heart. Already though, the effects were taking hold, spreading through his body and changing him, cell by cell.

As Gerard pulled off, pulling his teeth from Frank's neck with a slight jolt and a satisfied gasp, licking over the wound, Frank dug his nails into his bare shoulders, whimpering pathetically as he lay limply in Gerard's arms.

Seeing Gerard's face was slightly terrifying for Frank, his teeth and mouth stained red, blood dribbling down his chin as he looked at Frank, eyes dark,

"Frankie, baby," he breathed, licking around his mouth and sighing contently, "God, you taste so good..." His eyes fluttered shut for a moment, then he seemed to shake himself free of his blood lust euphoria and focus on Frank.

"Are you okay? Frank..." Gerard caressed Frank's paled cheek with his fingers, "Speak to me..."

Frank choked on his own breath, whimpering as he felt the tendons in his neck move, shifting the skin around his wound as sending pain shooting through him.

"I-It hurts... Everywhere, it hurts..." he said shakily, looking up at Gerard for some kind of reassurance, though all he got was a look of pity.

"I know, baby, I know... You've just got to hold on a few minutes, okay?"

Frank didn't want to wait. Frank didn't want to feel like this for any length of time. The ache in his neck was the least of his worries now, the mild throbbing was dying down and was now nothing compared to the itch that he felt, flowing through him. His insides - inside his arms, legs, chest, the very fibre of his muscles, the lining of his arteries - were itching, burning, like they were being squeezed by billions of tiny needles.

He wanted to hold Gerard close, claw at his back and be calmed by Gerard telling him it was all normal, but his skin was on fire. Frank wanted nothing more than to tear out his own organs and free himself of this agony, to crawl out of his own body, to scream at the universe and stop everything happening in that moment.

The venom continued to spread, taking hold of his body, rising and pumping through his chest against, heading to take his mind.

As soon as the venom reached his brain, Frank went rigid, eyes blind behind starbursts, lungs releasing the hurried gasps of breath he'd taken in his pained panic and heart rate dropping to normal again, like nothing had happened. The itching that had infected every cell of his being had dulled to a throb, making him acutely aware of every millimetre of his body.

The light that had burst in his eyes, like the strange twisting sparks one would see behind their eyelids after rubbing their eyes, cleared. He was reborn.

Frank took a gasping breath, like he'd been underwater, and stared at the ceiling of Gerard's room, the yellow nicotine stains glowing amber in the darkness. Taking a moment to gather his bearings and assess the situation, he twisted his head around and looked at Gerard.

Frank didn't remember Gerard pulling out of him, or even if he came or not, but the older man was sat back on his haunches, watching Frank with his hands over his mouth and tears streaming down his face, a look of fear in his eyes.

Frank took another breath, throat clear like he'd never struggled for air and been unable to make a sound.

"Gee..." he said softly, "Gerard, am I..."

The older man crawled forwards to his side and looked down at him with worry heavy in his eyes, "Frankie, are you okay?"

Frank thought for a moment, "I... Was that..."

"Does it hurt anywhere?" Gerard stroked his cheeks tenderly, looking him deep in the eyes. The way Gerard looked to Frank now was strange and impossibly beautiful; everything was somehow sharper, the colours in his eyes fitting together like shards of stained glass, no two strands the same in the deep hazel depths; his skin was paler, the tear tracks lining his cheeks were clear and bright, shining as though they were liquid crystal; his lips- god, his lips- were perfect, Frank's own blood no longer horrifying him with the way it trickled down his chin and left bright crimson splattered flecks across his face. It was gory and macabre and horrifying but so beautiful now, Frank couldn't help himself.

He sat upright, wrapping his arms around Gerard's neck and kissing him deeply, tasting himself on the older man's lips which only made the kiss more feverish. Frank was moaning, grasping desperately at Gerard's hair, nails raking across his scalp and shoulders as Frank tried to get more, more, more, of Gerard.

"Bite me," Gerard moaned, arms holding Frank's bare chest flush to his own, "Bite me, Frank."

He didn't need to be told again as something clicked inside Frank's brain, being suddenly hyper aware of Gerard's elevated pulse, heart thrumming against his ribs, under soft flesh, pale skin. Without another thought, Frank's mouth moved from Gerard's lips to his neck, taking a moment to breath in the scent. It was somehow completely different to before, still the smell of dust lingered, but now there was a raw metallic tang to the air around Gerard's neck, fresh bursts of the smell radiating from him with every heartbeat that made Frank's head spin with dizzy hunger.

He opened his mouth, pressing his teeth against the soft, salty skin, running his tongue across the pulse point and feeling the soft thrum of life beneath. Something inside of Frank awoke in that moment, snapping his jaw shut and forcing his teeth through Gerard's skin, into his flesh.

Blood flooded his mouth, like juice would have had he bitten into an orange, and he couldn't help but moan at the taste of the thick metallic flow. Opening his mouth a little and then sinking his teeth back in, harder than before, filled his mouth again. He pulled himself as close to Gerard as he could, legs wrapped around his hips as he drew more and more blood from his neck, left hand tangled in Gerard's hair to pull his head to the side as he fed. His mind went into overdrive, buzzing with some kind of animalistic instinct that had been awoken with the first taste of blood.

Gerard held him gently, one arm securely wrapped around Frank's slim middle, the other resting on his shoulder blades, rubbing soothing circles. Compared to how ferociously Frank was draining him, Gerard was being so tender, so loving. It was a moment of bonding, Frank's first blood, the two of them filled with love for each other.

Frank stopped trying to feed, simply letting blood flow into his mouth for a few moments longer. He pulled his teeth out of Gerard's flesh with a jolt, the blood flow having created a seal between them and the flesh. His vision was sharp again, head no longer spinning with blood lust as he smiled at the sharp tang lingering on his tongue. He leaned forwards again, licking across the two crescent shaped marks in Gerard's skin, catching the two small trickles of red that had been rolling towards his collarbone. As he tongue dragged across the wounds, Gerard moaned softly, the blood ceasing to flow, the tissue beneath the skin seeming to stitch itself back together like a fast spun spiders web, followed by the skin on top. In no more than twenty seconds all that was left to show for Frank's feed were two small red marks to show where his jaw had locked into Gerard's neck.

The younger boy's grip on Gerard relaxed, the older man lifting his head again and softly pulling Frank into a kiss, each other's blood still on their lips.

They kissed lazily for a few seconds, both more worn out than they had been for a long time. Gerard still held Frank lovingly, hands smoothing across the contours of the bone and muscles in his back and side. Frank had practically crawled into Gerard's lap in his frenzy, but now that he was calm again he allowed himself to be cradled almost, curling against Gerard and resting his flushed cheek against his lover's cool, bare shoulder. He felt safe here, happy, satisfied, and above all, loved.

They stayed like this, close, nude, and bloodied, for a few minutes until their breathing and heart rates slowed to normal and their bodied cooled down.

Frank was the first to break the silence.

"Why were you crying?"

The question was no more than a whisper, but he knew Gerard had heard him.

"You..." Gerard started, "You were in pain. I hurt you, and I hated it."

"It's okay," he trailed a hand down and back up Gerard's arm, "I'm fine now... I'm more than fine."

"I'm glad," Gerard whispered, the smile audible in his voice as he hugged Frank tightly, pulling him closer still.

"You still have a little way to go, baby. The transformation takes a while to fully set in," he brushed a hand through Frank's sweaty hair, "But the worse part is over now."

Frank sighed, now knowing there was still more changes in store for him, "What else is going to happen?"

"It's... kinda like a second puberty. You're gonna want to eat all the time, you're gonna be really tired one minute then hyper the next. You're gonna, uh," Gerard laughed slightly, "Get really horny... and you're gonna need my blood. You're gonna need to stay here for a week or two... Like, permanently. You can't leave the house, Frankie."

"Oh... Okay." Frank said simply. They felt into a slightly weighted silence again, until Frank spoke once more.

 

"What about after that? And telling my mom... and your parents? Where..." Frank sat up and looked at Gerard, the blood around his mouth crusting and flaking now, "Where are we gonna live, if I need you?"

"We'll figure it out, Frankie," Gerard cradled the back of Frank's head and gently kissed his forehead. Frank's heart swelled, sighing happily and smiling to himself through the worry, "They can't get mad at us baby, they can't keep us apart."

"I don't want to be apart from you, ever." Frank said. His own words surprised him, as though his heart were speaking before consulting his brain. He needn't have worried though, as Gerard spoke softly in reply.

"You don't have to be. I'm all yours."

He smiled, resting his head against Gerard's chest and feeling his heart beating inside his chest. He sighed happy, then his mouth stretched into a yawn, nuzzling against his lover's warm skin.

"I can feel your heart beating," he said, grinning to himself. Gerard took hold of his hand and pressed it against his chest, beside Frank's face.

"It's beating for you."

That was the last thing Frank could remember before falling asleep, tired, content, and satisfied.

 

\---*---

 

The first thing Frank registered when waking up was the shouting.

Not in Gerard's room though, beyond the door, but not too far beyond, judging from the clarity of the words being yelled.

The second thing was the fact that he was alone, wrapped up snugly in fresh bed sheets. How Gerard had managed to remove all the sheets, including the pillows, and replace them without waking Frank was a mystery, but he was grateful that he was not sleeping in his own blood.

The events of the previous night rushed back to him, heart beating hard at the memory. His hand flew to his neck, fingertips following the slightly jagged, but rapidly healed bite marks carved into his skin. He smiled, rolling over and staring at the ceiling, heart fluttering as he thought about the way Gerard had touched him, held him, looked at him and spoken to him.

His happy thoughts were interrupted though as his ears tuned into the yelling elsewhere in the house. One voice was Gerard's, and the other two voices were easily recognisable too, though their tones worried Frank a little.

"Like you're one to talk!" Gerard said, loudly, but not quite shouting.

"I knew Mikey was made for me the moment I laid eyes on him," Pete shouted, clearly more het up in their discussion than Gerard was, "It was just a fucking matter of time!"

"Yeah, well, same." Gerard shot back, "At least I waited until Frank was eighteen. But hey, maybe if you two hadn't ditched him last night this wouldn't have happened so soon."

"Does he even understand all this?" Mikey exclaimed, finally adding to the conversation, "Like, you couldn't have explained it all to him in one night?"

"Well I did as best I could. And yeah, so it was rushed, but we have the rest of our lives together now, Mikes."

"Does he even want this?"

"Yes!" Gerard sounded like he was close to tears now, as Frank started creeping across the room towards the stairs, bed sheets wrapped around him protectively, "I asked him, and he said yes. He wanted this just as much as I did, that's how this fucking works!"

"What if he'd just gone with it for the thrill or whatever? And it didn't work, huh?" Pete questioned furiously, "You'd have just fucked him and poisoned him? Let him die?"

Frank's gut jolted. Gerard hadn't told him that he could have died. Had Gerard really risked that?

"Come on, you two have to have seen the chemistry between us! I knew it would work, I knew he was the one!"

"Why last night, though?" Mikey asked firmly, "Why couldn't you have explained it to him and let him think it over, given it a few weeks, or even just a few days?"

"Because I love him! I've loved him for years, I've felt that pull between us since I was sixteen and I have been patient. God fucking damn it, have I been patient!

"Well you can tell mom and dad," Mikey replied plainly, "And his mom too. You can tell Linda what you've done and why you're taking away her kid."

Frank was now stood on the other side of Gerard's bedroom door, ear nearly pressed to the wood.

"I'm not taking him anywhere, Mikey. You know," he sighed, "Why am I getting this from you two, hm? Pete, you turned Mikey when he was just sixteen years old, and I helped you tell our parents. Did I give you all this bullshit: No. So why am I getting it from both of you?"

There was no reply from either Pete or Mikey for a few seconds, so Frank took this as his queue to show himself.

Slowly turning the handle, he pulled open the door.

Gerard had his back to the door, the bloodied sheets from the previous night bundled up in his arms. Mikey and Pete stood in front of him, blocking the way between him and the washing machine.

The glares that they both had fixed on Gerard quickly dissipated, their focus quickly switching to Frank. Pete was stood further forwards, almost between Gerard and Mikey, stood like he was ready to attack; Mikey was behind him, one hand fisted in the hem of his hoodie should he have leapt forwards. The both looked at Frank with a mix of concern and lingering anger.

"Frank," Mikey said simply, Pete breathing out a sigh.

"I heard all that, you know," Frank said, dismissing any kind of greeting, "And he's telling the truth. I wanted this."

He looked at the others, reading their faces and fearing the worst. Pete was looking at him his something comparable to pity, perhaps thinking Frank to be naive and stupid for letting Gerard turn him; Mikey's face was a picture of mild surprise, and of course, sympathy – he too had been through the agony of the change and knew exactly how Frank felt; Gerard was gazing at him with adoration, love, and happiness. It was upon Gerard's eyes that Frank focused.

Mikey was the first to respond.

"Are you okay?" he asked, stepping towards Frank, who nervously gathered more of the bed sheet around himself.

"I'm fine, yeah. I'm... Really great, actually." He laughed, causing Mikey to smile softly.

"Can I...?" he gestured towards Frank neck.

"Oh, yeah! Sure," he twisted his head to the side, giving Mikey and the others a clear view of the bite.

The bite was still a little angry-looking and red, the small crescents of Gerard's teeth showing as thin maroon scabs, but was otherwise healing miraculously. I wasn't causing him any pain, and hadn't done so since his first taste of blood. Considering how much it had hurt when Gerard had bitten him, he was thankful that it was healing so fast.

"Wow," Mikey commented, running a single finger over the bite, "That's a really fucking neat bite."

"Neat?"

"Yeah... clean. Pete bit me twice, so it kinda..." he shrugged, "I don't know, but it was messy."

"Oh. Uh... that's good, then." Frank laughed nervously, catching the way Pete was still glaring at Gerard. Not wanting anyone to get hurt, or for there to be any more yelling, Frank politely ducked away from Mikey and shuffled over to Gerard, wrapping his arms around the old man as best he could without letting the bed sheet drop.

Looking up into Gerard's eyes, Frank felt brand new. Gerard smiled softly at him and pressed a kiss to his forehead, wrapping Frank tightly in his arms, dropping the bloodied sheets in favour of his lover.

"See?" Gerard said to Pete, voice softened by Frank's presence, "I was right, and it worked. Look at him," Gerard looked back down at Frank, eyes bright and full of love, "He's beautiful."

Frank blushed and rested his head against Gerard's chest, but could feel everyone's eyes on him. Then he realised, Pete and Mikey were studying him, and hard.

"What?" he asked softly, looking at them, "Do I have something on my face?"

"Well, there's my brother's dried blood, but..." Mikey shrugged, "You're definitely changing."

Frank frowned and stepped away from Gerard, heading for the bathroom so he could see himself in a mirror. What he saw in his reflection wasn't quite what he had expected.

Mikey had been right- Gerard's blood was still around his mouth, dried and flaking off. But the rest of his face was what shocked him.

His skin was pale, paler than he'd even seen it, blue and violet veins showing themselves around his eyes and down his neck; His eyes were slightly bloodshot, but the irises were vivid green, the flecks of brown that had once been there had darkened to almost black, making his eyes seem almost like shattered glass orbiting the dark pits of his pupils; in turn, they were lined by thick dark lashes, as if the shadows around his eyes weren't enough; beneath the flaking blood, his lips were bright scarlet, plump and red and smooth; his entire body had been thrown into high contrast- dark, beautiful features against pale, delicate skin.

In the mirror, Frank caught Gerard slink in behind him, wrapping his arms around Frank's middle and kissing the bite in his neck.

"You're so beautiful, Frankie," he whispered, looking at Frank in the mirror, "Look at us."

Together, Frank saw they were a perfect match, with their dark hair, pale skin, and now matching, deep, mesmerising eyes. How he hadn't seen it before was a mystery, and no place had ever felt more like home than Gerard's arms did now.

"We have a bit of a way to go, baby," Gerard spoke softly, his very words flowing over Frank's skin with every warm breath and making him feel safe, "But this is us now. Our parents might be mad at us, but they can't be mad forever. No one and nothing can keep us apart, and I will always be here to protect you and take care of you."

Frank leaned back against Gerard a little more, Gerard's front fitting perfectly against Frank's back, and smiled, laying his hands over Gerard's forearms that had found their way around his waist.

"I love you, Gerard."

"And I love you, Frank," he murmured against Frank's shoulder, both of them breathing a sigh of contentment and smiling at each other's reflection. As Frank felt his heart thrum in his chest and his stomach swoop at the way Gerard looked at him, he caught the reflection of his own eyes flashing gold, and he knew in that moment that this was real, and everything was going to be okay.


End file.
